BEFORE YOU LAND
A year in LA: what do locals get up to each month?
Everyone says LA has no seasons, but they're just quiet: they change with the flowers, the ocean and the lights on the street. One month per page, so you know what you'll walk into whenever you come.
Translated from Jasmine’s original Chinese. The illustrated slides are on the interactive reader.
Key points
- January is the Rose Parade and gray whales; March is the marathon and poppies
- May and June mornings at the beach are often gray (May Gray, June Gloom)
- The Hollywood Bowl's summer season runs roughly June to September
- December is Christmas lights in short sleeves
Full text
January | The Rose Parade, gray whale watching
The Rose Parade is every January 1 in Pasadena; gray whales pass off the SoCal coast from December to March, peaking in mid-January; on clear days during the rainy season, the air is at its cleanest.
February | Lunar New Year, Palm Springs
Lunar New Year 2027 is 2/6, and Chinatown's Golden Dragon Parade is 2/13, 1–4 p.m.; Palm Springs' Modernism Week runs 2/11–21. To celebrate Lunar New Year in LA, you have to take the day off yourself.
March | The marathon, poppies, Dodgers Opening Day
The 2027 LA Marathon is 3/7; Antelope Valley poppies are best from mid-March to April, $10 a car, California's version of cherry blossom season; the Dodgers' home opener is 3/25.
April | Coachella, the beaches start to buzz
Coachella 2027 is 4/9–11 and 4/16–18; from March to August, little grunion fish surf up onto the beach at night to spawn, and in April through June you can only watch, not catch.
May | The County Fair, May Gray, jacarandas
The LA County Fair has moved from September to May; the beach is gray in the morning and the sun only comes out at noon; from late May to early June whole streets turn purple, 'LA's most purple two weeks.'
June | The Hollywood Bowl season opens
Summer concert season runs roughly June to September; June Gloom mornings are still gray, and the jacarandas are winding down.
July | Fourth of July fireworks, beach season
There are fireworks everywhere on 7/4, and real beach season only starts in July; when it's too hot, escape to the mountains at Big Bear or Lake Arrowhead.
August | Nisei Week, Burning Man
Little Tokyo's Nisei Week is in August; Burning Man is in the Nevada desert, but lots of Angelenos prep for it all year; 2027 is 8/29–9/6. 'At the end of August, half your feed suddenly disappears.'
September | The tail end of summer
The last few Hollywood Bowl shows, the Dodgers' final regular-season push, and the ocean at one of its warmest times of year.
October | Día de los Muertos, Halloween, the Santa Anas
Hollywood Forever's Día de los Muertos is at the end of October every year; the WeHo Halloween Carnaval is the night of 10/31 every year, free; the Santa Ana winds start up, so watch for Red Flag Warnings.
November | Thanksgiving, the lights start going up
Thanksgiving 2026 is 11/26; Descanso Gardens' Enchanted runs 11/22–1/9/2027; LA Zoo Lights starts around late November; the rainy season starts too, so bring an umbrella.
December | Christmas lights in short sleeves
Descanso, Zoo Lights, The Grove's giant Christmas tree, gray whales starting to pass by, and on clear days you can see snow on the mountains. Christmas in Taipei means a coat; in LA you can wear short sleeves.
One last line
LA's seasons don't change by temperature; they change by flowers, by the ocean, by events. 'Every month has a reason to come.'
Places in this story
In this series
An original JSLALALAND field guide by Jasmine Chang (@jslalaland).